In April, the number of job seekers decreased by 8,545 to a total of 280,078, and the unemployment rate dropped to 3.7%. That is 18,395 more when compared to the same period of 2023. The unemployment rate dropped to 3.4% for men, and remained at 4.1% for women.
A month-on-month increase in the unemployment rate was recorded in 4 districts - Most (by 1.2%), Mladá Boleslav (by 0.7%), Blansko (by 0.4%), Plzeň-město (by 0.3%).
In April, there was a decrease in the unemployment rate, which was mainly due to a renewed interest of companies in recruitment, which had been postponed during the winter months. With the arrival of spring, companies traditionally expand their teams. There is growing optimism among both companies and households, which can be seen in the higher economic growth estimates for this year and in higher retail sales. The trend of increasing optimism in the labour market can also be seen in employees' expectations for salary increases. According to the REBR 2024 survey, 71% of employees expect wage increases. This data indicates that employers are willing to invest in their teams, which may contribute to further reducing unemployment in the coming months. However, we expect a drop in hiring activity over the summer as many companies will focus on maximising the use of existing resources.
As at 30 April 2024, the Czech Labour Office registered a total of 268,046 vacancies. That is 614 fewer than in the previous month and 16,484 fewer than in April 2023.
On average, there was 1 job seeker per vacancy, with the highest numbers reported in the districts of Karviná (10.8), Bruntál (6.8), Hodonín (5.8), Děčín (5.2), Most (4.4), Blansko (4.4), Jeseník (4.2), Jablonec nad Nisou (4.0).
According to the latest available data, the seasonally unadjusted unemployment rate, processed by EUROSTAT for the purposes of international comparison, reached 3.1% in the Czech Republic in March, as compared to 6.2% in the EU27. The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in the Czech Republic was 2.9%, compared to 6.0% in the EU27.
In the 4th quarter of 2023, the average gross nominal monthly salary* (hereinafter “average salary”) was CZK 46,013, which is CZK 2,734 (6.3%) higher than in the same period in 2022. Consumer prices increased by 7.6% during this period, and real wages decreased by 1.2% as a result. The amount of salaries increased by 6.5%, and the number of employees grew by 0.1%. Compared to the previous quarter, the seasonally adjusted average salary grew by 1.5% during the 4th quarter of 2023.
Compared to the same period of the previous year, the median salary (CZK 39,685) increased by 6.0%, which corresponds to CZK 42,340 for men and CZK 36,842 for women. Eighty percent of employees received salaries between CZK 20,073 and CZK 74,654.
source: MPSV, ČSÚ,
ec.europa.eu
* calculated to the number of employees in the national economy